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Researchers at Maastricht University in Holland followed the weight gains and losses of more than 5,000 men and women for ten years before analysing their DNA for genes that have been implicated in obesity.

They found a mutated version of a gene called MMP2 to be common in the women – but not the men – who had gained weight.

Scientists found a mutated version of a gene called MMP2 to be common in the women ¿ but not men ¿ who had weight problems

Researcher Dr Freek Bouwman said that at least 30 per cent of women have the impaired version of MMP2.

For men, a flawed version of a known gene called FTO makes them pile on the pounds, with those carrying it almost twice as likely to have gained more than a stone.

Dubbed the ‘junk food gene’, it increases cravings for sugary and fatty foods and men who have it can eat about 100 calories more per meal than average – the equivalent of a small Kit Kat or a bag of Wotsits.

Over a week, the extra food eaten amounts to 2,100 calories – or an entire day’s food. FTO and MMP2 may be gender-specific because their activity is controlled by sex hormones, the European Congress on Obesity in Liverpool heard.

Delegates were told that the findings could also help one day identify people who are particularly prone to putting weight back on once they have lost it.

Professor John Wilding, of the UK Association for the Study of Obesity, said genes cannot take all the blame.